Kiwanis Christmas parade a hit

Despite the finale—which brought with it a little rain—the 2023 Republic Kiwanis Christmas parade was a smash hit. Spectators lined Main Street Saturday afternoon as floats, school groups, classic cars and civic organizations strolled past in holiday themed attire.
Kiwanis President Jessica Schultze was pleased with the parade turnout.
“We had more floats than ever this year,” Schultze said. “The parade itself lasted over an hour. We had 18 floats register for the competition (many more did not register just participated), the high-school and middle-school band, the state runner-up Republic Football Team, Corvette Club, almost 20 vintage cars, five fire-trucks, a horse club, the Republic Lacrosse Team, The Republic Middle School Volleyball team and the 417-princesses. …Although the weather wasn’t exactly what we hoped for, the City of Republic showed up in full force and energy.
I couldn’t be more proud or thankful of the amazing work that the volunteers of our Kiwanis Club did to put this all together.”
2023 Kiwanis Christmas parade winners
Crowd Favorite: Sue Carter Real Estate
Most Creative: KML Farms
Closest to Theme: Girls Scouts 71665
Kiwanis Giving
Following the parade was the lighting of the Christmas tree on Main Street and the presentation of the 2023 Kiwanis Giving. A full list of Giving recipients will run in next week’s issue of the Commonwealth.
Christmas on Main Street 2023
The parade was only part of the celebration though, as Christmas on Main Street 2023 was in full swing. That amounted to a day of attractions downtown, including a free movie viewing, Polar Express readings, Hood UMC craft bazaar and Christmas village, food trucks, vendors and much more. The Main Street holiday fun continues on Dec. 9 with a baking contests and gingerbread contests.